


It's Really Not As Difficult As You Make It Seem

by Bichol



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alcohol, F/M, M/M, Multi, OT3, Sexuality Crisis, Slice of Life, Threesome, almost nonexistent, also jason having Family Trouble when did that happen, also the solangelo is barely there, enjoy your stay, idk if i want to actually WRITE PORn but mmmaybe?, just... general shenanigans, not too big but its there, sorry man, this is mostly jason being bi as fuck, welcome to rarepair hell
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-07-18
Packaged: 2018-09-20 05:22:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9477416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bichol/pseuds/Bichol
Summary: Jason's view in life has always been "Look at the Bright Side No Matter What". He is determined to keep that motto till the end of his days. So when he sees his girlfriend kissing her best friend he tries tonotspiral into despair and find something possitive out of the situation.Except... he is actually kind of enjoying this?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> ya kids know that phrase "be the change you want in the world"? that is me right now. im doing this my guys. im delving my fingers into the grimy, lonely, cavernous place that is Rarepair Hell. this will probably only be read by three people. o well
> 
> also this is no beta read whatsoever

Paros University is one of the biggest schools in the state of California, both in name and in literal extension. It counts with opportunities in multiple science branches such as the prestigious Trojan Horse Program, in which a student from another university spends one or two semesters studying in P.U. in their original field. Kind of like an exchange students program, except there's no exchange, and it's not really from another country or anything, it's just other state. 

And Jason is going to _crush_ the Trojan Horse Program. 

It's not that he's not nervous, because he is, a little. But, well, he's also confident enough to admit he _is_ a pretty smart kid. He can still hear them back at Lupa University saying how this program is a "one in a million students opportunity" and how "he's worked so hard to get it!". And he has! Kind of! Really, his grades are great, his father couldn't be more proud, he doesn’t _hate_ political science, and he's going to do great and there's nothing inherently scary about changing schools even if it's for one semester and... 

Okay he is a little bit more than a little nervous. 

It's just that –and this sounds incredibly stupid, even when he only says it in his head– he does not know _anyone_. At all. He's completely alone. In this university full of people. No one to talk to. 

Ugh, he's being so dramatic. Also his phone is ringing. 

"You're being so dramatic". Says Nico's voice through the microphone. 

"Wow. It's like we're connected Nico! It's so nice to hear from you too!" Jason had _told_ Nico he felt like this before, he'd specifically told Nico he was being dramatic too. This is not _news_ to him. 

"Oh my god, are you being sarcastic right now? I'm so proud of you?" The worst insult is, Nico's voice tone actually does sound proud. 

"Ugh, sorry" Jason goes. His nerves are turning into sarcasm, it seems. 

"Aaand you ruined it." 

"...Sorry?" 

"Look, okay." Nico says, exasperated. "We're getting out of topic." Jason can picture him massaging his nose bridge right about now. 

"What topic. We weren't talking about anything. There was no topic, dude" Jason snorts. 

"Of course there was! Shut up! What are you wearing right now?" 

" _what_ " Jason stops cold in his tracks and immediately collides with another student. "Whoa, sorry about that!" His apology could have been more effective if he could stop uncontrollably giggling, but seriously Nico, _what the fuck_. 

"No. _no_. Jason that is _not_ what I meant and you know it. Oh my gods. Stop laughing!" Jason does not stop laughing. "You know what, whatever, forget it. I was _just_ about to text Percy the color of your nerdy sweater of the day so that he could recognize you, but whatever." 

Oh, that. Percy. 

So, Jason had been lying a little bit with the whole "not knowing anyone in here" part. He kiiinda knows Percy. Not _in person_ or anything. He hasn't spoke to the guy at all either. In fact, he really doesn't know him at all. 

But Nico does, and he offered to introduce them. 

"Oh! That!" Jason says, his voice sounding just a little shaky. 

"Jason, relax". 

"I'm relaxed!" Jason exclaims. 

"Sure, okay." And of course Nico is not falling for that one. "Just tell me your sweater's color?" 

"It's um, blue". 

"The blue knitted one? With the hole?" 

"Yeah." 

"Nerd." 

Jason just chuckles. "Nico, stop projecting yourself, it's not healthy you know." 

"Ha, ha. Anyway I just texted him, he's waiting in their usual spot." 

"Their usual spot?". 

"You're in building C right?" 

Jason knows where he is, but he still looks around for the small "C" letter placed on top of the building, just to be sure. "Yeah". 

"Well, okay, you know that tree behind building F that has huge chunks blown off?" 

"Um, no, Nico, I literally just got here. I'll go to building F though", says Jason as he starts walking. 

"Great, when you arrive there look for the guy who looks like a giant bro douchelord, that's him." 

"I can tell him you said that, you know". 

Nico snorts. "It's not like I've already said it to his face". 

________________ 

 

Percy _does_ look a little bit like a giant douche. 

He's literally wearing baseball shorts, a backwards cap, a sleeveless t-shirt, and socks. With sandals. His t-shirt has the phrase "I flexed and the sleeves fell off" on it. 

"Dude! Hi!" Percy approaches him with open arms. Before Jason gets a chance to say anything he gets engulfed in a giant bear hug. Complete with bro pats and all. 

"Yeah uh, hi". He says, patting Percy in the back as well. There, now he's not awkward. "Percy, right?" 

"The one and only! Nico has told me so much about you! You're like, famous around here!" Percy guides him towards two girls sitting under a huge tree. Which has two massive holes who look like explosions? Huh. 

"Am I? Nico has told me about you too. He forgot to mention your terrible taste in clothing, tough". Jason says, looking pointedly at Percy's t-shirt. He smiles a little to let him know it's a joke. 

"This, dude, is a _conversational starter_. It's completely on purpose. We're _conversating_ now. See?" 

"I'm pretty sure there are better ways to start conversations?" Jason says, laughing. 

"He's giving you the conversation speech?" The taller girl snorts as she approaches them, exasperated. She's blond, with kind of a hooked nose, and grabs Percy by the arm as she offers Jason her hand to shake. "Don't believe a word he says. He's wearing this entirely unironically. He saw the shirt and thought it was hilarious so he bought it immediately." Jason laughs as Percy gives her a betrayed look. 

"This is my traitor girlfriend Annabeth" he scoffs with a smile. 

"Nice to meet you", goes Jason while shaking her hand. 

"And don't forget the socks with sandals? Who even gave him that idea?", laughs Annabeth. 

"That would be Leo", says the second girl as she joins them. She has dark skin, an amused smile, and a heart-shaped face framed by an incredible amount of hair. 

She's also the most beautiful girl Jason has ever seen in his life. 

"It keeps my feet warm!" Percy complains. 

"I'm Piper", says the girl at the same time, waving her fingers at Jason. 

Piper. 

"J-jason" he stammers as he offers her his hand. Are his palms sweating? He hopes not. 

"Nice to meet you, Jason" Piper laughs as she takes his hand "you have a nice name". 

"Oh, um, thank you! You too!" 

"Your feet could also be warm by, you know, _using sensible shoes_!" Goes Annabeth in the background. 

"But where's the _aesthetic_ of that though!?" Percy responds, and Jason can't help but bursting into laughter. 

_____________________ 

 

"So, you're a Trojan Horse Student, what made you do it? What was the final straw that you decided to change schools?" Asks Percy. 

The four of them are now sitting below the comfortable shade of the blown up tree. When Jason asked what had happened to it, Piper went into a twenty minute story about how she and her best friend, Leo, had been testing this new "Extreme Population Increaser Concoction, E.P.I.C. experiment for short", that was _supposed_ to make the tree grow faster and better. The results had been... a little inconclusive. 

"It's not like I'm changing schools forever, you know?" Jason snorts, "It was, you know..." 

"You know?" Encourages Piper. 

Jason makes some vague hand gestures. "You know! That whole 'expand your horizons' stuff, and all those 'make new friends and encourage communication between schools' thing... that" Even he can tell he doesn't sound very convincing. 

"Whoa dude, that sounds a lot like you memorized it from the brochure or something". 

"I kind of... did?" Jason sheepily adds. Both Piper and Percy look at him like he has some kind of weird bug squashed on his glasses. Annabeth just nods like it's the most natural thing. 

"And, like," Piper starts asking. She's put Percy's cap on (after a lot of arguing and hand fighting) and Jason can't help but think how much better it looks on her. "Aside from memorizing the brochure, do you know anything else about this school?" 

There's a lot that Jason knows, actually. He'd been studying the school for months because he kinda has a penchant for planning stuff ahead of time? And even if he didn't, Reyna definitely has it too. And even if _she_ didn't, Nico has done this program before him. 

So it could be said that even if he personally hadn't set foot in this school at all before today, he already knows it from inside out. 

"Uh, I've investigated a little? Also Nico has told me a lot about it too. I actually know a lot about this place." 

"Dude, you know nothing, Jason..." Piper stops mid sentence, "What's your last name again?" 

"Grace." 

"Of course it fucking is." She grumbles. 

"What?" Says Jason while Annabeth snickers at Piper, she counters it by ever so casually kicking her shin. Jason doesn't really get it, but okay. 

"You only know what they've _told_ you man! You need the full experience! Lame campus tour and all!" Piper exclaims excitedly. She looks at her other two friends. 

"And the keg party of the century!" Percy counters. "Keg-par-ty! Keg-par-ty!" He starts chanting, pumping his fists in the air. 

"O. M. G." Piper actually says "oh em gee" out loud. Jesus. "I'd forgotten about the keg party tomorrow! Jason you have to go." She grabs him by the arm and looks at him imploringly and Jason can't help the quick heartbeat or the "y-yeah sure" he stammers dumbly. Jesus. 

"Also! We're giving you a tour right now!" Says Piper standing up. 

"Keg-par-ty! Keg-par-ty! Keg-par-" 

"Actually, we'll be bailing on that lame campus tour." Says Annabeth sighing. 

"Keg-par-ty! Keg-aw Beth, no." Percy immediately deflates as her girlfriend stands up, grabbing him by the arm so that he goes up too. 

"I have class in fifteen minutes! And you do too! And you _actually_ have to go this time! Sorry guys." She says, looking apologetically at Piper and Jason, "Guess we'll have to do it another time?" 

"I mean, I have time right now." Says Piper, giving Jason a gorgeous smile that he can't help but return, although he's sure his looks less gorgeous and far more clumsy. "Do you mind if it's just me?" 

"I'd love to be just with you! Uh.." Jason stutters, looking at Percy, who's only concentrating in pouting at his girlfriend, and Annabeth, who giggles and rolls her eyes. "I mean..." 

"It's okay, we'll see each other at the keg party right?" She says, and Jason nods. God his face is so red. "Have fun you guys." She waves them, gives Piper a knowing smile, and grabs hers and Percy's bags as she turns to the road. Jason can hear her say "Also please don't call me Beth, it sounds terrible." To Percy. 

"...Betsy, darling." 

"I'm going to dump you into the lake." 

"So!" Piper chirps, and Jason turns to look at her. He's beginning to regret this decision, because he has no idea what to say and he is. So nervous. 

"So!" He responds and he is. So awkward. 

"That tour!" She responds enthusiastic, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. 

"Yeah the tour! Let's do it!" He begins walking until he realizes... he actually has no idea where she's taking him, "Uh... I don't know where we're going". 

Piper laughs and it’s the most beautiful sound in the world. 

_________________________ 

 

As promised, she gives him a tour of the campus–or at least the "important parts", she says, which mainly consist on places where she and her friends got in trouble or did something "epic"– and Jason learns a lot about her in the process. Piper is studying Biologic Sciences, focusing on climate change. She's a vegetarian. She can't cook for shit. She cuts her own hair and does Leo's too. Her father is an actor and put her in acting classes when she was little, and she absolutely hated it. 

"Which actor? Do I know him?" 

"Maybe I'll tell you later" she tell him with a playful smirk. 

The trip ends at the front of Jason's dorms. It's late already, the sunset painting her skin a lovely shade of copper. A stray gust of wind blows some hair into her mouth and she makes a face. Jason finds himself struggling to keep speaking with her. 

"So... where do you live? You're not in the dorms, are you?" He asks, trying to come up with something to say. 

"Oh no, not really" she smiles "Leo and I share an apartment, it's a little far from campus but it's pretty nice". 

They share a flat. Piper and Leo share a flat. Jason remembers all the times she mentioned him fondly when telling Jason about her adventures and his stomach sinks all the way down to his legs. 

"So are you and Leo..." Jason doesn't know how to ask, and he's not sure he'd like an answer either. "Um..." He can't continue. 

"Me and Leo are what?" Piper seems confused for a moment until her eyes light with realization "Oh! No! No, no! He's like, my best friend! We know each other since we were kids it'd be so weird!" She's shaking her head, laughing a little and, is she blushing? 

"Oh! So you're..." Jason lets all the breath he was holding, relieved. 

"Yeah I'm... single" Piper smiles to the floor. 

"That's good! I mean..." Jesus he's so red too. "Yeah" he finishes lamely. So lame. He cannot do this at all can he? 

"And you don't– there's no one at your other university?" Piper asks, a little shy, smiling. 

Jason immediately thinks of Reyna and the mess _that_ ended up being, for a few months. They're friends again tough. "No, there definitely is nobody". 

"That's good!" She counters with a smile, and Jason laughs. "So about that keg party..." 

Jason is at first confused by the sudden change of topic, but then he notices Piper's smile and her decided eyes. And he just. He goes for it. 

"Would you like to come with me?" He lets out in a breath, "I mean, only if you want to". He feels the sudden urge to run toward his dorms and never look back, he settles on scratching the back of his head. 

"I'd love to!" Piper smiles so hard her eyes crinkle, "I'll pick you up at nine, okay?" 

"Uh, yeah. Yeah ok." 

"Perfect! I actually have to go now". She starts to turn but then "Oh wait, give me your number". She demands. 

_____________________ 

Five minutes later find Jason draped over his bed, with his phone resting on his stomach, and with a cute girl's number on said phone. 

Said phone is also ringing. Jason picks it up to read the message. 

**Nico:** so how did it go 

**Jason:** Pretty good actually! Percy is nice! 

**Nico:** nice lmfao wait till u know him for real 

**Jason:** Questionable taste in clothing though. Also. 

**Nico:** also? 

**Jason:** I think I kinda have a date? 

**Nico:** a date... with who??? annabeth???? jason no wait 

**Jason:** No not Annabeth! Just... another girl 

**Nico:** :0 

**Nico:** well then 

**Nico:** this sounds interesting 

**Nico:** im calling 

Jason puts the phone back on his chest, waiting for his friend to call. He smiles. 

Maybe this semester won't be so dull after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> YALL HELLO YALL  
> so this is not the length i originally planned this chapter to be, its SO much shorter!!! why, you ask? because i broke my fucking arm in a freak bicycle accident!!! im so angry!  
> im ok tho, dont worry. also it was my left (non-dominant) hand which is just... so lucky oh god id be crying 24/7 if it had been the other one holy. shit just.. thank u god  
> anYWAY it turns out typing with one hand is slow as shit and its DRIVING ME INSANE so i decided, fuck it, im gonna upload what i have right now and return...periodically... to upload piece by piece until i FINALLY end with a finished chapter... hopefully soon... yeah  
> (in case you were wondering, yes, the drawing-with-one-hand-thus-no-ps-keyboard-shortcuts is ALSO driving me FUCKING NUTS FUCK. IM DYING. I LITERALLY CANT DO ANYTHING.)  
> but yeah! thats it! lets do this! not giving up on this one hhh h hh hhffggfgh
> 
> ________________________________
> 
> EDIT: okAY YALL change of plans  
> i added juuust the little bit of the part i wanted to make this chapter _seem_ finished, and ill leave it at that. i just... leaving it like this was bothering me oops

If Jason is being completely honest with himself, he's gotta admit he's not exactly a party person. He enjoys being drunk, to some extent, but there's just so many _noise_ at parties. So many people talking at once and music blasting everywhere and all those girls that he doesn't want _flirting_ with him... 

That sounded so snooty. Wow. 

He should probably pay attention to class and stop thinking about the keg party (and Piper), tough. It's not that the lesson is not interesting. It is! His teacher's been going on about the "Five Love Languages", it's pretty cool because apparently each person has a primary way of expressing their appreciation, and it's very important to define who has what because it otherwise could lead to a bunch of misunderstandings if for example you define love by Gift Giving and your significant other is more into Kind Words and– 

_"Virgen Santísima porfa dime... ¡¡que chingados hago aqui!!"_ The guy beside Jason groans to himself. 

He'd been sitting in different positions every minute, each time growing more and more restless. Right now he's got his face smushed in his notebook, his hands gripping his hair. 

Jason tries to ignore him, figuring whatever this guy is going through it's probably none of his business? And he's really trying to pay attention to class! This is really interesting! He's usually not that easily distracted but the guy is now banging his head against the desk and his pen is rattling and he can't even write now and honestly– 

"Hey, um, are you okay?" He whispers to him. Figures it's a good start rather than straight up telling him to knock it off. 

The guy stops hitting his head, thankfully. He stays with his face in his notebook, tough. He's very still now, he's not even moving. This is weird, should Jason be worried? 

"Uh... dude?" He extends a hand towards him, but stops just before touching his shoulder, unsure of what to do. 

The guy turns to look at him so fast his curls spring in every direction, sending a pen clattering to the floor. Jason jumps in his seat. 

"This class" He starts, not even bothering to lower his voice. He rises from the desk and leans against the chair, his hands over his eyes, "is soo fucking boringgg!" 

"Dude, lower your voice!" Jason whispers, he looks around to see if someone else has noticed this guy complaining. Everyone seems to be _trying_ to pay attention, not unlike him. 

"How can you be _so chill?_ I'm slowly dying! Of boredom! Plants are starting to grow on me!" In his defense, he _did_ try to speak more quietly, now doing something more like a controlled shout. This dude has no inside voice whatsoever. 

"Come on" Jason says with a snort "It's really not that bad! Class is almost over anyway." He sighs, knowing he's not getting anything done as long as he's sitting next to this guy. "Are they making you take this class or something?" 

"It _is_ that bad, there's still 13 minutes, a million minutes, n minutes, to go!" He takes his hands away from his face and the first thing Jason notices is two moles right next to his mouth. The guy is looking at him with a crazed expression. "No matter how many minutes there still are left, it's gon' still be too long! Because I'm in– oh!" He stops mid-sentence, now looking at Jason's notes like they hold the answer to every riddle in the universe. 

"What?" At this point, Jason is not even sure what to expect, but this guy is kinda funny in a random-and-quirky, manic-pixie-dream-boy kind of way? Is it weird that he's thinking this? Mystery guy takes the notebook from Jason's hands and draws it so close to his face it looks like he's sniffing it. He then turns to look at Jason with big eyes full with wonder. His brown bedhead frames his thin face and he looks kinda... cute. Which is not a thing Jason should probably tell the guy he's thinking, because who likes to be called cute, when you're a guy? No one. 

"You..." Mystery Guy follows, holding Jason's notebook to his chest "You have notes!? On this class??!!" 

"I, yeah?" Jason responds, he's beginning to realize where this is going. This guy's speech is kinda hard to follow, but not that hard. "You don’t, I assume". 

"Oh my fucking--" He's holding Jason's notebook like a lifeline, he's not sure he's ever getting it back. "You gotta sit next to me from here on. You okay with that? Wait no. Scratch that. This isn't a question. It's happening man. I'm making this happen. You gonna be my _savior_ oh my _fuck_. I've taken this class two times already because they makin' me do it and it doesn't even have _anything_ to do with what I'm studying but they're like ' _emotional and social knowledge is vital to every individual doesn't matter his or hers field of study_ ' which I _get_ , lady. I hardcore get it but at the same time _ooohh myy goooddddddd_ – ". 

"I'm– okay? Sure?" Jason interrupts him. So apparently he has already met another friend. If you can call this weird notebook-stealing-gremlin a friend. A study buddy? "But if you want to copy my notes, you kinda have to let me make them first" He chuckles. 

Mystery guy seems to realize he's still holding Jason's notebook in his arms. 

"Shit. Yeah. I see your point there. It's a good one. But–" He raises his finger, as if lecturing Jason or something, and in that moment the bell rings. Students next to them begin rising. "Class is over!" The guy finishes with a brilliant smile. 

"Wait how–" says Jason, looking around him. 

"I'm taking your notebook!" The guy beams. 

"Wait wh–" 

"Shhh! It's okay! I'll return it! Don't worry about it.. Uuh.." Mystery guy rises from his seat slowly, pointing a finger at Jason and backing away from him as if he's going to pounce him or something. 

"Jason" He says, deciding to help a guy in need a little. 

"Cool! Jason. M'bro. I'll see you around!" The guy grabs his bag (a ratty thing with pins all over and what appear to be... burnmarks?) and bolts to the door as if his butt is on fire. He turns at the door to look at Jason one last time. "I appreciate this dude! Big time!" And then he's gone. 

Well. 

Jason should probably get out of the classroom too. Students from the next class are already entering.

____________________________________________

The sun is starting to set and the afternoon warm has P.U.'s students draped over the gardens, chatting and laughing. Jason decides it's been a good day. Great day, even. He has a ton of homework, sure, but that was already expected, and he even has a schedule prepared so that he'll be able to complete it all, have that afternoon skype call with Nico and Reyna he promised, _and_ go to the keg party (with Piper) after that. He also met that weird funny guy and he's not sure this is a good thing? But it's also not a bad thing either. So. He'll take it! As he walks to his dorms to get ready Jason realizes he feels kinda... light. 

His phone rings. It's his father's number. 

Suddenly he doesn't feel too light anymore. 

He clears his throat as he rises the phone to his ear. "Hello?" He says, maybe it's actually him this time. 

"Jason, your father told me to call you around this time. Are you free to talk?" A feminine voice answers. Jason deflates a little, unsure if he's feeling relief or disappointment. Of course it's his secretary... whatever her name is. After the seventh secretary Jason stopped bothering trying to learn how they were called. 

"Ah, yeah. Sure". Jason stammers. What could his father want? 

"Your father just wanted to confirm if his email has reached you. You haven't been turning new updates on the student council's workload and Mr. Grace was wondering when can he expect them." 

A weird, familiar, cold feeling settles in Jason's chest. His shoulders are involuntarily hunching. 

"Uh– I'm sorry I didn't– I didn't realize I had to keep doing the student council's work?" He knows he sounds pathetic. But he honestly didn't know! He thought changing schools meant he wouldn't have to keep organizing stuff for _another_ school. How can he even do things when he's not even there! "I'm not, um, currently in the university. I'm doing the–" 

" –Trojan Horse Program, yes". The secretary answers, cool and authoritative. And if she keeps this tone up Jason thinks she might have a chance of staying employed more than a month or so. "That is no excuse to slack on your obligations with Lupa University. Your father has given you more than enough time to settle into your new temporary life, Jason. He understands it can be complicated, but we do need those reports by Monday. They're very important". 

"I, uh. Yeah I'll– I'll do them this weekend" Jason gulps. 

"Perfect. Thank you, Jason. Goodbye". And with that, the line goes dead. 

The sun is set and Jason walks to his dorm in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _"Virgen Santísima porfa dime... ¡¡que chingados hago aqui!!"_ roughly means: Holy Virgin please tell me... what the fuck am I doing here!!!
> 
> also to all of those who commented... what the fuck? i thought this fic was going to get like three views and like one and a half kudos this is... weird.. i feel weird in my stomach... like love.. ugh  
> this fic (and that other one) will proooobably take some time to udate.. because im not really... used to writing hhahah i dont even know what im doing man... heres [my tumblr](http://bichol.tumblr.com), if yall wanna check that out for some reason?? idk?? i lov eyou???


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *posts 4,300 words at three in the fucking mroning* why am i... like this.... why do they keep getting longer... thats what she said

He doesn't even realize he's already at his dorm. 

Jason is so busy making schedules in his head, the door to his room takes him by complete surprise. And by the time he's gotten in and sat in front of his laptop, he feels his head filled with cotton. There's a ringing between his ears. His fingers are numb. 

Is he having an anxiety attack? 

Because, that would be pretty dumb. It's only more work, right? It's no more than a few weeks worth of files to read, essays to write, future campaigns to organize, some financial stuff maybe? How much can it be anyway? Jason takes a deep breath and tries to calm himself. He opens his mail. 

Fifteen unread messages in his inbox, all with multiple attachments. They all say "URGENT" in big bold letters. 

He covers his head with his hands. 

Okay, okay. So. Time to reorganize. He can do this. Deep breaths. He'll just, pull an all nighter. Two all nighters. He can afford to not do that essay he was planning, it's for next friday anyway. It's not the end of the world. 

He won't be going to that keg party either. 

Guess he should get it over with already. He takes out his cell phone from his back pocket. 

**Jason:** Hey Pipes, about that party... I don't think I can make it after all... sorry... 

**Piper:** what????? jason nooo  >:U 

**Piper:** are you sure?? i was so excited :( 

This is ridiculous! Jason shouldn't even be this anxious about _missing some party_! His hands shouldn't be trembling just because he has _extra work_! 

He just. He kind of thought he wouldn't have to be in the student committee in Paros University. 

He kind of thought he wouldn't have to be The Model Student here. 

Skype's familiar jingle makes him jump in surprise. Nico. Right. They were going to hang out. 

Jason shouldn't answer. He should just send Nico a message telling him he's drowning in work. His finger hovers over the red button. 

But then again, he remembers those times where Nico was a shadow of himself, those times where getting even a _skype call_ from him was like, the second coming of Christ or something. 

He'll make it quick. 

"Took you a while, eh? Where you in the bathroom or someth— What's wrong?" Nico doesn't even need to look at him face to face to figure out there's something going on with him. 

And here Jason thought he'd been doing so well. 

"Uuhh... nothing?" He stammers. Nico has appeared on his screen, he's already wearing pajamas and is holding his favorite "Don't XD me you son of a bitch" mug. 

"Nothing my ass, Jason" He deadpans. 

"Nothing your ass is pretty accurate, actually" Jason tries to liven the mood. Nico doesn't need to hear his very insignificant problems. 

"Okay fuck you I have some— don't try to change the subject asshole! I know you!" 

Jason bites his lip. "...look okay don't worry okay? I can handle it", he finally says. 

"Did Percy do something? Because that guy can be a huge asshole and I know he doesn't mean it but sometimes he says things... not okay things and—" 

"No, I— Percy didn't do anything, I haven't even seen him today at all". Jason interrupts. 

"...Okay? So what is it?" Nico says. He's all grumpy now, it's kind of adorable. 

"…" 

"Jason I swear to god... why do you always have to be like this? Why do I always have to _pry_ things from you?" Nico looks less adorable now and more frustrated. Jason sighs. He'd lost this battle from the beginning anyway. 

"Okay but to be fair, you're exactly the same as me dude". He says with a chuckle. A sad chuckle. 

Nico seems like he's going to start retaliating but stops at the last minute, "And how annoying is that for you? When I do that?", he opts to say instead. 

"...very annoying" Jason admits. 

"You see? So tell me." Nico says with a small, knowing smile. He's learned so much. They've come so far. Jason is kind of proud. He sighs again. 

"...so today I got a call from my dad's secretary..." He starts weakly and lets his words die. 

"...oh" Nico's smile fades. 

"Yeah..." Jason responds. Nico doesn't say anything, maybe expecting Jason to continue. 

Silence reigns for a minute. 

"...what did she say?" Nico blurts, losing his patience. 

"Well she kind of... told me I've been neglecting my obligations as part of the student council and that there's like, a lot of work I have to do for... monday... kind of a lot... and I don't know, I had everything planned so that I could finish everything and still be able to go to that keg party and chat with you and now just... ugh..." It sound even dumber when Jason says it out loud. Like he shouldn't be _this_ upset about such a minor incident. "It's stupid, I know". 

"What the hell, though? You shouldn't be doing student council work when you're not even on the school?" Nico says angrily. He's back to huffing and scrunching his eyebrows. 

"I thought so too but— what are you doing?" Jason says after he hears Nico smash his keyboard without mercy. 

"Adding Reyna to the conversation, of course". He says, smirking. Just at the same moment Reyna's familiar icon appears on the screen. 

It takes a while to connect. But when Reyna finally answers on her cell phone she looks disheveled, she's wearing sports clothes. She still looks amazing. 

"Hello, Nico. Jason, you look like shit." She says as she holds her phone to her face and squints. 

"Hello to you too Rey" deadpans Jason. Nico is laughing, the asshole. 

Reyna shrugs, unapologetic "I thought we were past that point of our friendships in which we hide things to make each other feel better. If I ever look like shit, I'd like you to tell me". She says with a smirk. 

"I'd tell you" Nico adds with a smile. 

"Oh, I know you would". Laughs Reyna. 

"It's not fair though, you always look good", chimes in Jason. 

"Shut up Jason, and tell me what happened". Damn it. She'll never let it go either. 

"I can only do one of those things at the same time though". Jason weakly attempts to change the subject. 

"His father called". Nico answers impatiently with a huff. 

"His father?" Reyna asks, eyebrows going way up, disbelief all over her face. 

"Well, his secretary". 

"Oh" She deadpans. Yeah, that's more believable. "Everything okay?" 

"Pretty much" Jason responds quickly. 

"She dumped him like a month's worth of shit to do by monday" Nico answers again. "Student council shit". 

"It's not a month!" Jason cries, his hands making a placating gesture towards Reyna. She's got her eyebrows up again. "Maybe like... two week's" He grumbles. 

"That's completely ridiculous. Why should Jason be even doing student council work when he's not even part of the student council anymore? He doesn't even know what's happening in here... no offense, Jason" Says Reyna looking outraged. 

"None taken." Jason says with a small laugh. 

"Right? I said the same." Nico chimes in with a proud smirk. 

"It doesn't even make sense! I divided your work equally between everyone when you went away, Jason." Meaning she probably took more than a half of Jason's responsibilities to herself after he left. That girl is like a robot. "There shouldn't even be anything for you to _do_. Wait, let me go upstairs." Reyna starts walking — _striding_ — angrily towards her study. 

"Told you she'd fix it." Goes Nico, his proud smirk growing even larger. 

"You didn't tell me anything, and I don't need you to 'fix it', Reyna. Really, it's okay!" Says Jason. He doesn't want to give her even more work to do! It's not fair to her! "I just need to reschedule some things and I'll be fine", he's not going to be sleeping much but. That's just college, right? 

"Here it is. Jason, send me all the emails your father sent you." Commands Reyna opening her laptop, her eyebrows furrowed. 

"But—" 

"Jason." 

"Okay" Jason sighs. 

He sends her the files. Nico taps his mug impatiently as Reyna goes through each and every one of them. Her face goes from angry, to even _more angry_ , to... something unreadable. 

"...huh" she finally says. 

"What?" Says Nico, putting his mug away. 

"Everything he sent you... It's already done. We've already taken care of all of these things." She eventually tells them, holding her phone to the computer screen so that they can see. It's too small and the quality is a little off, but Jason can clearly see the "DONE" files that Reyna is showing them, and they have the same names as the ones on his inbox. 

They're all quiet for a minute. 

Something like a year after they first met, and after long, heartfelt conversations sometimes involving alcohol, Nico, Jason, and Reyna decided to form what they called The Shitty Parent Club. Only a way for them to bond with each other and well, feel less alone, Jason guesses. 

And still, after all the little absences and demands and just weird stuff in general that his father does to "try to make Jason a productive, complete member of society", Jason still thinks he's got the better end of the stick between him and his two best friends. He's pretty lucky. 

So he will avoid complaining too much. Because he's the rock Nico and Reyna need to stand against. Jason will sigh and take whatever his father throws at him. 

"Why would he send you shit to do when they already did it?" Asks Nico, his face sour and suspicious. 

"Maybe it was a mistake?" Jason slowly answers. 

"...Let's choose to believe that." Reyna responds too. Nico lets out an indignant huff. 

"Let's not. That's bullshit!" He yells. 

"Nico, please" Jason says, trying to calm him. It wouldn't do any good to have Nico doing something impulsive. 

"He's probably thinking this is giving you, I don’t know, character strength or something" says Reyna. A sad but resigned look on her face. 

"It's bullshit! Your dad wants you to not have a social life and a sleep cycle for some reason!" Yells Nico throwing his hands over his face. "We should, I don't know... kill him or something" 

A pause. Even Nico looks surprised with his own suggestion. Both Reyna and Jason start laughing. 

"Don't you think that's a bit excessive?", laughs Reyna. 

"Shut up!" Says Nico, but he's trying to hide a smile. 

"Or something?" Asks Jason still laughing. 

"Egg his house?" Nico suggests, shrugging. 

"Do people still do that? Was that even a thing outside movies?" Reyna asks, a hand over his mouth as she chuckles. 

"I don't know, I don't go out much either." Says Nico shrugging again. 

Speaking of going out... 

"Oh! This means I could actually go to that keg party!" Jason realizes. He could actually see Piper tonight. 

"With _Piiiipeerrrrr_ " Echoes Nico. He elongates Piper's "r" and it sounds weirdly obscene. Jason's face feels hot. 

"Piper?" Asks Reyna, confused. 

Oh yeah, he hasn't been able to speak to Rey since... like a week probably. Wow. He starts trying to explain, "No one, just this girl—" 

"His _giiirlfrieeendddddd_ " Nico interrupts. 

"Jason! Why didn't I know about this?" Demands Reyna indignant. 

"...I didn't want to distract you from your very important student council obligations? Also she's not my girlfriend" ...yet. 

"Yet" Nico echoes again. He needs to be punished. 

"You know what, if I'm going out, you guys should go out too!" Says Jason with a too-sweet smile, looking directly at Nico's eyes. He knows the effect is watered down because he's not _actually_ looking at Nico's eyes because for that he should be looking at the camera but, oh well. 

"What? Hell no." It still holds the effect intended. Nico now looks like a betrayed cat. 

"Huh. That's not a bad idea at all". Adds Reyna with a knowing smile. 

"I'm already in my pajamas! I was watching Dirk Gently! You can't make me!" Nico fires excuses hurriedly. He pulls his Batman bed covers up and hides angrily between them. 

"I can't make you, but she can" Says Jason with an even bigger smirk. 

"I certainly can and will. I need a shower first though". Says Reyna, smelling herself and pulling a face. "I'll be there in thirty, Nico. You can do my hair?", She stands up from her seat and starts walking. 

"...ugh, okay." Nico sighs after a pause, apparently admitting defeat. Jason pumps his fists in silent success. 

"Perfect! Jason, I'll send you everything so that you can edit it a bit and give it to your father". 

"That sounds... awesome Rey. You saved me" Sighs Jason. Honestly, what would he do without his friends? 

" _I_ saved you. With the power of friendship." Chimes in Nico. "And _this_ is how you pay me you asshole?" 

"Oh come on it'll be good for you! You need to get some sunlight from time to time!" 

"It's the middle of the night!" 

"Also... yeah. Thanks, Nico." Jason whispers scratching the back of his head, a small smile in his face. 

"Don't sweat it. We're there for each other, right?" Says Nico rolling his eyes. 

"Yep. Nico suggests killing your father and Jason makes Nico go to the big scary outside." Says Reyna with a laugh. 

"And you just... laugh at us from your throne." Jason laughs with her too. 

"That's me!" 

"Ugh, I'm going to try to squeeze in one more episode." Nico complains between his bedsheets. His face is barely visible now. 

"You do that." Jason responds, still laughing. 

 

 

**Jason:** Change of plans, sorry! I am actually going! 

**Piper:** !!!!! thats so good cause im already outside ur dorm oops!!! :UU 

 

 

Piper, wearing a really nice orange tank top and driving a really nice car (it looks expensive? But Jason know very little about cars to actually know) picks him up to go to the party. Jason greets her with a "Hello" and she greets him with a rushed "okay I promise you I'm not like, _stalking_ you or something I was totally going to respect your decision about not going and the fact that I was outside your dorm does not mean I was going to like, kidnap you okay it's just that I pass your dorm on my way to the place from my place and yeah. That's all I wanted to say. Hello.", she takes a deep breath, her eyes shine when she smiles. 

"Hey, I never thought that for a second, okay? In fact it was very funny and... kind of cute". 

Piper mumbles a thank you and Jason thanks every god in existence for Reyna and Nico, because without them he wouldn't be seeing that adorable flush on Piper's cheeks right about now. 

Almost everyone is already there when they arrive, at least that's what Piper tells him. They're greeted by Annabeth and Percy, who immediately puts a red cup in Jason's hand. Percy then puts an arm around his shoulders and proceeds to introduce him to each and everyone of the people he comes across with. He is a very popular dude. Jason gets to meet the Stoll twins, who seem to be planning "the prank of the century" but won't tell Jason because it's a secret, Drew Tanaka, who gives Jason a complete once-over and then looks at Piper with a very serious face and nods (Jason doesn't miss the way Piper nods back, conspirative), Clarisse, who only glances at him before going back to speak with his buddies about arm-wrestling, and so many others Jason honestly starts to lose count. He'll probably have a hard time remembering all the names, but the faces he will recognize. 

No sight of the mythical Leo, though. 

"That asshole, he told me he would come like a week ago", Piper huffs when Jason asks him about Leo's whereabouts. "But then today he _just remembered_ he had to finish a project due Monday. I would've dragged him here anyway but he actually looked kinda nervous about this one". 

"Bummer. I was looking forward to meeting him". 

"He really wanted to meet you too! I kinda talk... about you... sometimes", Piper's adorable blush is back. 

"Yeah my friends... they also know about you", Jason feels his face getting hot as well. He takes a quick sip of his drink —what even is it though? Scotch maybe?— just to give his tongue something else to do other than embarrassing him. How do people even do the whole "suave" thing? Is that concept even real? 

"Only good things, I hope?" Piper smirks, teasing. 

"If he says only good things about you is because he doesn't know you yet Pipes". That last one is said by Percy, who has suddenly arrived and is now poking at Piper's ribs insistently. "Hey. Piper. Pipes. Do a keg stand with me". 

"Are you serious? What kind of fratboy bullshit..." Piper starts, but she's smiling, and Percy is already pulling her towards the concurred drink table in the middle of the room. She gestures for Jason to follow. "Isn't it a bit early for keg stands anyway? Do you want to pass out at eleven?" 

Keg stands look... hard, to be honest. And when they try to make Jason do one he just waves his hands and refuses with a smirk. Not really his thing. 

The party is turning out to be pretty much his thing, though. Everyone's very nice and Jason has made at least ten new friends. There's a sense of camaraderie in every part of the house, in every conversation and touch, even though there's just _so many people in here_. It's as if everyone is one big family and Jason is being accepted in it. 

"It all started with Percy, as always" Piper laughs when Jason asks her why everyone here seems to know each other. They've moved the party outside, just by the pool. Jason can see almost everyone from here, dancing to a tune he doesn't recognize, Piper's voice making everything else muted. She's sat on the grass, away from the main lights and most of the shouting. She doesn't seem to care at all about the dampness of it, so Jason sits next to her. "On his first year he didn't know what he wanted to do so he just... registered on all of the sports teams. All of them." She continues. 

"How did he even—" 

"No one has any idea! Not even him. Eventually he quit everything except for Swim Team, but by the time that happened he'd already made friends with literally everyone and was like, the most obscenely popular person on the university." Her eyes crinkle as she laughs. The lights of the pool reflecting in them. It's breathtaking. 

"So that's where you met him? On a sports team?" Jason asks. 

"Oh no, we don't really do sports, Leo and I. We met through Annabeth on a study group". 

Jason nods. "Annabeth seems like the type" 

"Yeah! She's mad smart. They're like, the Brains and the Brawl, maybe. Except Annabeth can arm wrestle you under the table... and Percy is a pretty good student, when he puts his mind into it. Huh." Piper muses. She takes a pensive sip of her drink and looks at them. Jason turns just in time to see Percy pushing Annabeth into the pool and then jumping, fully clothed, after her. Annabeth screams "asshole!", but then kisses him, laughing. 

"They seem... happy", Jason smiles. 

"Yeah..." Piper muses. "I hope they are. They deserve it." She pauses. "They kinda adopted us. Like mother hens" She laughs, her voice is small, as if she's talking only to herself. "Except not really". 

"What do you mean?" Jason asks. 

"Oh, uh. Well. Leo and I were kinda... rebellious. I guess." She turns to look at him with a small grimace. 

"Rebellious?" 

Piper hesitates, scratches her head with the hand that’s not holding her drink. "I don’t know. We just, had anger issues? I guess?" She says, laughing and shaking her head. 

"Anger issues?" 

"I— yeah. Heh." Her voice is muted. She puts her glass down and slowly wraps her arms around her legs, looks at the pool when she speaks. "I used to like... steal stuff. And do impulsive shit like that", there's a small smile in her mouth that won't reach her eyes. But she waves a hand, dismissive. "...Ran away from home once." 

Jason... doesn't know what to say. "Wow." 

"Yeah..." She laughs. There's silence. 

"I get it", Jason continues. She turns to look at him, cocking an eyebrow. "I mean, I've never ran away from home but... my sister did". 

And Jason hasn't talked about Thalia with anyone except his friends. His father refuses to mention her at all. Why is he telling Piper now? There's enough alcohol in his system to make him feel a little more bold, the tip of his fingers are pleasantly numb, but he's not really drunk. 

He just... really trusts Piper, Jason guesses. 

"Huh." She says. She's laid her head in her legs, still looking at him. 

"Yeah" Jason finishes, lamely. "Haven't seen her in a while" His voice comes a little strangled. He clears his throat. 

"Don't worry. She'll return eventually." She smiles, "I did." She puts a hand on his arm, comforting. 

Jason shouldn't be making this about himself. He should find a way to turn the conversation back to her. 

"So why did you... ran away?" He asks, Piper's hand seems to lose a little bit of it's grip. "If it's okay of me asking." He rushes to continue. 

"It's okay." She laughs, after a while. "I just— I felt invisible, I guess? My dad was always so busy, and I never saw him... and nobody cared about what I did or said..." She hunches her shoulders. Pulls her knees even closer to her chest. "So one day I just... left". 

Jason can't bear to see her like this. Muted. 

"But you came back." He says. 

"Yeah, I did" She breathes. "My dad made the news like a day later... he had a meltdown and they caught him on camera. Nobody knew why because my whole running away thing wasn't announced..." Jason lets out a small gasp. She shakes her head. "At first I thought they just didn't care and that's why they didn't say anything, but then that happened and I just... I was just being so stupid, you know? Making everything about myself, not realizing how much he cared. He just had a different way of saying it, I guess". She sighs, lowers her knees. "I've never told this to anyone", she whispers. 

Jason thinks back to that same afternoon. To the last time he heard from his father. Thinks of all the times he felt like he was just another checkmark to complete on his dad's very busy schedule. 

"I kinda want to kiss you a lot right now." The alcohol speaks for him. He just knows he doesn't want Piper to feel like that ever again. 

She turns to look at him, confused. They're so close. Jason can feel her breath on his mouth. She stares at him. Whatever emotion she sees in his eyes is enough for her to approach him and slowly, slowly touch her lips with his. She tastes like alcohol and mint, her eyelashes tickle his cheeks. It's sweet and perfect. Brief. 

"I don't normally do this on a first date" She whispers. Her eyes are crinkling again. 

"Is this a date?" Jason chuckles. 

"No" Piper says after a playful pause. "I demand a proper date, with a movie and everything". 

Jason laughs. His fingers are not numb anymore. He's _floating_. "Then how about tomorrow?" 

Piper's smile is blinding. "I'd like that", she whispers. 

It's been a good day, overall.


End file.
